Life turned upside down the day my family found out that their organic dairy farm was contaminated with PFAS.
Sewage sludge had been spread on their land, and that sludge was riddled with PFAS.
Normal operations on the farm ceased forever. The PFAS-laden milk my family’s cows produced could no longer be consumed. The farm’s milk buyer discontinued buying the milk, which meant the farm lost their income. The cows still required feeding, milking and general care.
High levels of PFAS contamination were found in the farm’s soil and in the farm-grown feed that the cows consumed. The wells that supply my family’s drinking water were highly contaminated.
The bad news continued. Further testing revealed the beef from the farm to be extremely contaminated. And with that, the toxic exposure reached beyond the contaminated farm property, all the way to Durham, where I live with my husband and children. We had regularly stocked our freezer with this beef, thinking that the meat from the farm was the safest and healthiest choice for ourselves and our kids. Over a four-year period, we regularly fed it to our toddler and elementary-aged children. Five sets of lab results confirmed that our blood was saturated with extreme amounts of PFAS.
In New Hampshire, sludge fertilizer has been used on farmland for decades, and the state still allows this practice today. The potential health implications of PFAS on our farms is worrisome, to put it mildly. New Hampshire is already well versed on the health impacts that come with PFAS exposure through the experiences of Portsmouth and Merrimack. Farmers, and their communities, need to be protected. The practice of land applying sewage sludge as a fertilizer needs to end.
HB 1275 gives New Hampshire lawmakers an opportunity to protect our farms, food, water and wildlife while simultaneously supporting PFAS-impacted and exposed farmers. This bill will create a farmer relief fund to help farmers financially recover and survive if PFAS is found from historical sludge applications. This relief fund will help farmers test for PFAS and offer resources to protect the health of people exposed to PFAS from sludge applications. And, this fund will protect consumers by helping farms identify PFAS contaminated farm products.
Critically, HB 1275 will put a five-year moratorium on the land application of sewage sludge, preventing additional PFAS contamination of soil in New Hampshire.
Farmers, farms and their communities are beloved in New Hampshire, and New Hampshire lawmakers need to protect them by supporting HB 1275.
Allison Jumper lives in Durham.